“Formative” is a Vague Visages column about music albums that influenced the writer’s teenage experience.
“Zomby’s tracks were more exciting when plugged straight into my head. His music enlightened me to how euphoric and pleasurable 8-bit sounds can be, especially when they are used not for kicks, but to project melancholy and strangeness.”
“Davis’ mandate has always been to offer solace for sad kids, but his lyrics reside more often in the inescapable experiences of pain, isolation and frustration than in the pursuit of recovery.”
“The affinity I have for Prince, and the things that I learned from his music — and continue to learn — is different than what my mum took away from it decades earlier; the music, and the connection we share with it, is something I find myself returning to regularly.”
“‘Express’ felt like music that was made FOR ME — not my parents, and certainly not the other teenagers I knew who liked music that seemed boring and soulless.”